no cheap seats here

Ryan worked his tush off to become the valedictorian of his class. While I did marinate in that for a good long while, for the life of me, when we walked into the gym all I thought of was, "Cool--we get great seats!" The god of comfort and convenience rears its pointy little head.

Kev & I played musical chairs a couple times so I could have the aisle seat to get some pics and video. I tried to keep out of the way of the official videographer right next to me, but I did forget he was there sometimes, so proud parents just might receive a DVD with a big blue flowered wall that side-steps into the picture now and then.

Ryan gave a shout-out to our family when he got to the podium. With smiles that wrapped all the way around our heads, we wanted to stand and chest-thump a big, "That's MY boy!"

Silently, I thanked God a hundred times for raising this guy Himself, for taking hold of his disposition and wending it along His narrow path. This is the child I freaked over, curling up in the fetal position and sobbing, "I can't do this. I can't be a mother to him. I don't know how. I just don't know what to do." Now he has not only achieved some lofty goals, but he further captured my heart with these words: Mama, I was thinking about you. I thought, "O' daMoms [don't ask] has never lived by herself. Wives usually outlive their husbands, so you'll probably live with me. I can take care of you."

The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places. ~Ps. 16:6